besmirch C2+ Topic:Plants & Agriculture US /bɪˈsmɝtʃ/ UK /bɪˈsmɜːtʃ/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 verb to soil or to damage someone's reputation or honor He sued the tabloid for trying to besmirch his good name. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 verb · to soil or to damage... sullytarnishstaindefiledishonortaintsmear ↔ Opposites honorcleansepurify Word family Derived forms besmirchment Related forms smirch Etymology AI details From be- (intensive) + smirch ('to discolor, stain'), of uncertain origin, perhaps from Old French esmorcher ('to torture, hurt'). be- Old English smirch Middle English View etymology graph -> Topics Plants & Agriculture External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # besmirch **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** verb **IPA (US):** /bɪˈsmɝtʃ/ **IPA (UK):** /bɪˈsmɜːtʃ/ ## Meanings 1. to soil or to damage someone's reputation or honor ## Examples - He sued the tabloid for trying to besmirch his good name. ## Synonyms - sully - tarnish - stain - defile - dishonor - taint - smear ## Antonyms - honor - cleanse - purify ## Derived Forms - besmirchment ## Related Forms - smirch ## Roots and Affixes - Root: be- - Root: smirch ## Etymology From be- (intensive) + smirch ('to discolor, stain'), of uncertain origin, perhaps from Old French esmorcher ('to torture, hurt'). ## AI Etymology Besmirch is from be- (intensive) + smirch ('to discolor, stain'), of uncertain origin, perhaps from Old French esmorcher ('to torture, hurt'). Important recorded forms include be- (Old English) and smirch (Middle English). Morphologically, the word is a built form whose named elements carry part of the historical sense. Its deeper history remains uncertain, with proposed links left as possibilities rather than a single settled derivation. The current sense covers to soil or to damage someone's reputation or honor. The wider family includes derived forms such as besmirchment and related words such as smirch. ## Topics - Plants & Agriculture markdown